"Oh no, the nest's filled with water?! ... oh wait??! It's baby birds!!!" -- Western Bluebird Nestbox Monitoring - May 5th, 2017

Friday 2017-05-05 (11am-noon): Oh my gosh ... "our" first baby birds. We had a busy weekend coming up, so my folks checked the nestboxes a bit early this week. I'm so bummed that I didn't get to see the big reveal of the first nestlings!!:

Box #1: An all-stick nest has been started in this box, which I think could be a Wren?

Some new nest-building activity has occurred at Box #1.

Box #2: Once again the box is empty, a small Vespid nest was removed, and lye soap re-applied to the box's upper interior.

Box #3: I'm surprised that this box still does not have any Tree Swallow eggs. My Dad moved the nestbox a few inches further up the pole.

The nest in Box #3 is still empty.

Box #4: A female Bluebird was sitting on the nest when the box was opened! So, no egg count was done this week. The area around Boxes 4 thru 6 had been recently mown.

Box #4.

Box #5. Remains empty.

Box #6. Once again, there was a bird sitting on the nest when the box was opened. And, we're learning that this can be difficult to realize this at first, because the box interior is so dark and the bird is low in the nest! From the quick pictures, it looks to have been a Tree Swallow, as expected from the 5 white eggs that were seen in this nest last week. No egg count was conducted this week. Unfortunately, there may have been a predation event at this box?: There were many white feathers on the ground immediately in front of the box.

Box #6: A Tree Swallow actually remained on the nest during the check of the box!

Box #6: Another close-up of the Tree Swallow on its nest.

Box #7: A nest has finally been started in this box, and the Tree Swallows were rather aggressive around this nestbox. This brings the site up to six out of ten boxes occupied.

Box #8.

Box #8: Five eggs now!

Box #8: A Tree Swallow was seen leaving the box as we approached. One more egg has been added since last week, for a total now of 5. The area around this box was recently mown, and it is no longer swampy ground.













Box #9: When my Dad opened the box, he apparently said, ""Oh no, the nest's filled with water?! ... oh wait!??? It's baby birds!!!" There were four Bluebird hatchlings, all crammed together. They are all mouth! We think there's four heads in the picture:

Box #9 ... it's almost unbelievable what's inside ...:

Box #9. "Our" first hatchlings, Western Bluebirds.

I'm guessing the hatchlings in Box #9 might be about 3, or maybe 4, days old ... which means my "earliest hatch date prediction" of about 5/1 was pretty good! So, the earliest they might fledge is 5/19 ...

Box #10: Remains unchanged, with no eggs.

50% Occupancy! -- Western Bluebird Nestbox Monitoring - April 30th, 2017

Sunday 2017-04-30 (10:15-noon): 50% occupancy, and even more real Easter eggs in "our" nestboxes!!! We very much enjoyed meeting up with Jeff Bonneville today.

Box #1: Still empty. Brushed out some Vespids and re-applied lye soap to the box's upper interior parts.

Box #2: Still empty. Brushed out some Vespids and re-applied lye soap.

Box #3: There's still a Tree Swallow nest, with Tree swallows coming and going, but no eggs yet. A small Vespid nest was removed and lye soap re-applied.

Box #4: Two more Bluebird eggs have been added since last week, making for a total now of 3 eggs! My prediction is that earliest hatch date will be 5/16. The parents remained very close by as we checked the nestbox.

Box #4. Western Bluebird eggs. Isn't that just the perfect little Easter egg nest?

Box #5: Empty, Vespids removed, lye applied.

Box #6: A Tree Swallow peeked out of the box and watched our approach -- leaving only when we got very close. And wow, there are 5 Tree Swallow eggs now! My prediction for the earliest hatch date is 5/15.

Box #6. Tree Swallow eggs. So pretty with all the feathers.

 

Box #7.  Empty, Vespids removed, lye applied.

Box #8.  After opening the box, we realized a Tree Swallow remained sitting on the nest!! Jeff said this was very unusual behavior for this species. So, we closed the box and retreated. The mate immediately entered the box, and then after a minute or so, both birds successively left the box. Upon re-checking the nest, there are now 4 eggs (just 1 more than last week). Given the parent's nest fidelity and the fact that only one egg has been added since last week, my prediction is that the eggs are now being incubated -- with an earliest hatch date of 5/14.

Box #9: There are still only 4 Bluebird eggs, so they must be finished laying and now incubating. The Bluebird parents were seen nearby. I'm predicting that the eggs in this nestbox will be the first to hatch, possibly as early as 5/1.

Box #10: The nest that had been started is still unchanged ... and there are still no eggs. Both Tree Swallows and Bluebirds were seen around the box though.

More REAL Easter Eggs!! -- Western Bluebird Nestbox Monitoring - April 23rd, 2017

Sunday 2017-04-23 (10:00-11:00): More real Easter eggs in "our" nestboxes!!!

Box #1: Two small sticks inside the box and droppings on the roof. Otherwise, still empty.

Box #2.

Box #2: Some shavings inside the box, but otherwise still empty.

Box #3.

 Box #3: Tree Swallows were seen entering/exiting the box. More feathers have been added to the nest, but there were no eggs yet.

Box #4.

Box #4: There is a new nest of straw, with one light-blue egg (probably a Western Bluebird)!!













Box #5: Empty. Removed a small Vespid and nest in the upper corner.

Near Box #6; We are being watched.

Box #6: Nest present, with feathers, but no eggs yet. A pair of Tree Swallows sat together very nearby while we checked their box. We were also repeatedly dive-bombed.













Box #7: Empty. This box is shaded in the morning, which may not be ideal.

Box #8; Three Tree Swallow eggs.

Box #8: Tree Swallows were seen entering/exiting the box, as in weeks prior. But now there are now three small, very white (almost translucent), and tapered eggs! The Tree Swallows returned to the box as soon as we moved away.

Box #9. The eggs looks white in the photos, but they were blueish.

Box #9, four eggs.

Box #9: This nest has a very deep cup, and two more little blue eggs have been added (making for a total of four now)! There are no feathers incorporated into the nesting material. Bluebirds were seen entering and exiting the nest. We also watched half a dozen Tree Swallows swooping around and landing on this box. One was quite interested in looking down the hole of the metal pole. The Bluebirds seemed to be sitting at and protecting the nestbox entrance quite frequently. They also sat on the vineyard stakes directly opposite the box.





















Box #10: The nest that had been started is still unchanged. No eggs present.

Box #10.

Other scenery:

REAL Easter Eggs -- Western Bluebird Nestbox Monitoring - April 15th, 2017

Saturday 2017-04-15 (11:00-11:45): What an Easter treat: Real Easter eggs in one of "our" nestboxes!

Box #1: Empty.

Fresh mowing near Box #1 and #2.

Box #2: Empty.

Box #3.

Box #3: A tree Swallow nest (that incorporates a lot of blue Western Bluebird feathers), no eggs yet. We saw Tree Swallows coming and going from this box.














Box #4: A nest has been started. No eggs.

Box #4.

Box #5: Empty.
Box #6: A nest has been started. No eggs.
Box #7: Empty.

Proud Papa Tree Swallow singing.

Box #8: The nest now has a lot of feathers, no eggs yet. Tree Swallows were seen bringing nesting material to the box. One of the pair sat on top of the box and sang at length.

 

Box #8.

Box #8.

 Box #9: Nest present, neat and of straw. There are TWO blue eggs!!

Box #9.

Box #9.

Box #10. Some nest material present, but seemingly unchanged from last week. No eggs.







Additional scenery at the site:

Box #10.

Western Bluebird Nestbox Monitoring - April 9th, 2017

Sunday 2017-04-09 (10:00-10:30): A beautiful sunny morning, with wisps of fog and clear skies after the recent rains. And, we have our first nests getting started!

Box #1: Empty. Drilled some vent holes.
Box #2: Empty, with a few small sticks. We knocked out a small Vespid nest and drilled some vent holes.
Box #3: A nest has been started! Many of the blue feathers that had been nearby on the ground last week had been incorporated into the nest.

Box #3 with the start of a nest.

Box #4: A pair of blue birds were seen flying away from the nestbox as we approached, with one having come from inside the box. We removed a small Vespid nest, applied more lye soap to the top corners of the box interior, and drilled some vent holes. Otherwise, the box was still empty.

Box #5: Empty. Vent holes were added.

Box #6: There was a piece of straw hanging out of the hole (very cute!). Inside, a straw nest had been started. We added a top vent hole.

Box #6.

Box #7: Empty. We drilled a vent hole in the top.

Box #7.

Box #8: This is still the most active box, with lots of Tree Swallows swooping about. Tree Swallows were seen bringing nesting material and entering the box. Inside the box, a nest had been started. A Tree Swallow brought nesting material as soon as we moved a little away from the box. Bluebirds and many Red-winged Blackbirds were in the nearby trees.

Box #8.

Box #9: There were a lot of White-crowned Sparrows in the nearby bushes. There was a fresh bird dropping on the outside frount of the nestbox, and inside was a very well-developed nest of mostly straw.

Box #9.

Box #10: Inside is the start of a nest of straw and some greenery/lichen.

Box #10.

Additional scenery at the site:

Western Bluebird Nestbox Monitoring - April 2nd, 2017

Sunday 2017-04-02 (10:00-11:00): We continued our new Sunday routine today, enjoying another gorgeous visit to the vineyard to monitor nestboxes. There was a bit of fog when we first arrived, which is so characteristic of this region.

Today we more properly labeled each box, and remembered to take measurements of the hole diameter and compass bearing.

Box#1: Empty, but two small twigs had been brought in. This is the box that I thought I saw a Wren on top of last week.

Box #2: Empty.

Box #3: Oh dear ... there was a dense cluster of blue feathers on the ground below the box. Feathers and fresh droppings were on the top and sides of the box, and there were a few pieces of straw inside the box. This box may be too near the vine post, thereby enabling predator access?

Evidence of a predation event at the base of Box #3.

Box #4: Empty.

There's been some new trees planted near boxes #4 thru #8.

Box #5: Empty, but two Vespids were inside.

Box #6: There were a few pieces of straw inside the box, and fresh droppings on the box roof. We removed a Vespid, and applied more lye soap to the inside of the box.

Box #7: Empty, but a single Vespid flew out of the box so we re-applied lye soap to the inside. This box and possibly a few others need a few more ventilation holes drilled.

Box #8: Empty, but this box had several pieces of straw inside and Tree Swallows were seen bringing nesting material to the box.

Interior of Box #8.

Box #8.

Box #9: Empty, but there was evidence of recent bird activity: fresh droppings and a few pieces of straw.

Box #10: Empty, but a few pieces of straw had been added to the box.

We had quite a thrill when we spotted a Bullock's Oriole!, in the tree near Box #8.